Eagles Host Broncos This Weekend

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Listen Live (Friday, April 23 - Both Games)

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Currently riding a five-game winning streak, the Eastern Michigan University baseball team is back at home this weekend, April 23-24, for its first Mid-American Conference West Division series of the season. The Eagles will host the Western Michigan University Broncos for a Friday doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m. before wrapping up the series Saturday, April 24, at 1 p.m. at Oestrike Stadium. The series was orginially scheduled to be a three-day series, April 23-25, but impending weather conditions forced the game time changes.

Friday's games will be available on Eagle All-Acess, with Chad Bush and Greg Steiner providing the coverage, beginning at 2:50 p.m. live from Oestrike Stadium. Click here to register.

ON THE HILL: Junior right hander Corey Chaffins (3-3, 5.83 ERA) will start the series opener versus WMU, followed by sophomore left hander Collin Taylor (2-4, 6.68 ERA) in game two and sophomore Kendall Lewis (4-2, 5.54 ERA) in the series finale. All three of EMU's starting pitchers hail from the Buckeye State.

EMU VERSUS WMU: The Broncos lead the all-time series, 78-69, but the Eagles have been victorious in nine out of the last 10 meetings versus Western Michigan. Since 2000, the Eagles have a 19-16 record against the Broncos. Last season, the Eagles took two out of three games versus the Broncos in Kalamazoo, Mich., out-scoring WMU, 39-24, behind the bats of Matt Skirving and Todd Graves. Skirving and Graves finished a combined 9-for-26 at the plate with six home runs, nine runs scored, and 17 RBI.

THE COACHES: EMU Head Coach Jay Alexander enters Friday's contest with a 205-201 career record, including a 44-53 mark in his second season with the Eagles. Western Michigan's Randy Ford enters Friday's game with a 125-162 career record.

OVER THE HUMP: The Eagles' 19-18 record this season marks the first time since their season opening victory over No. 25 Kansas the team has been over the .500 mark.

THANK YOU, COME AGAIN: Junior right hander Corey Chaffins has tallied a team and MAC-best 59 strikeouts in 63.1 innings pitched this season. Chaffins is averaging over eight strikeouts per-start in nine starts this season. The New London, Ohio native is three and one-thirds innings away from matching his total amount of innings pitched from last season and is 10 strikeouts away from equaling last season's total. Chaffins also leads the MAC with three complete games and 63.1 innings pitched. Chaffins has tallied 170 career strikeouts (11th all-time in EMU baseball history) in 170.1 innings pitched.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS: Junior Zack Leonard recently recorded his 200th career hit, making him just the 13th player in EMU baseball history to do so. Leonard is on pace to break Derrick Peterson's all-time hits record of 274 that he set from 2001-04 next season. After going 3-for-4 in EMU's 6-2 win over Cleveland State, April 20, Leonard has 203 career hits, good for 10th all-time. Leonard needs four hits to pass former EMU leadoff man Kyle Rhoad for ninth all-time.

MARSHALL LAW: With five homers this season, senior Andrew Marshall has tallied 32 in his four-year career, good for fourth all-time in EMU history. Marshall needs three home runs to pass EMU Hall of Famer Chris Hoiles for third all-time. Marshall's 18 round-trippers last season were the third most in a single season in EMU history, trailing only Hoiles (19) and Ryan Goleski (22).

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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